Cushion heel



Patented Jul so, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT cmrrom: ROBERTS, or WINCHESTER, AssAoHUsn'rrs, ASSIGNOB, BY mnsnn ssromunnrs, To UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, or rarnnson, NEW JER- SEY, CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

ousnron HEEL;

Application filed April 24,

This invention relates to cushion heels and has for its object the provision of an improved, type of heel which shall be superior to heels of existing types in respect to adaptability to heel bases and heel seats of different shapes, cost of manufacture, and uniform flatness of tread surface after attachment.

The invention is applicable both to whole heels and to half heels, or heel lifts, which are adapted for attachment to the convex heel seat of a shoe or to a heel base presenting a heel receiving face which is not flat. Such heel bases are used in large quantities and are manufactured very economically, consisting usually of one or two plain lifts molded to scoop shape in a heel compressor. The outer face of a base of this type is-convex, to a degree approximating that of the convexity of the heel seat of the shoe for which the base is designed, and it has been customary to make rubber heels with flat tread faces and concave attaching faces to fit accurately the convex outer faces of the bases.

It has been necessary to make a different rubber heel for each differently shaped base, as

has also been the practice in the case of rubber whole heels for use on shoes havingheel seats of different shapes. This necessity resulted from the fact that, unless the concave face of the heel exactly fitted the convex face of the base or seat, the entire heel would be deformed when it was attached and the tread face of the attached heel would no longer be flat.

By the present invention a cushion heel is provided which is deformable at its attach- I ing face, to permit it to adjust ltself under heel attaching pressure to heel seats of different degrees of convexity, without substantial deformation of its tread face. The number of different shapes of heels which it is necessary to manufacture in order to satisfy the require ments of shoe manufacturers may thus be greatly reduced, with an accompanying reduction in expensive mold equipment, increased production with a given amount of labor, and consequent lowered cost of manufacture.

For the most satisfactory cushioning effect, coupled with maximum wear, it is desirable that the tread portion of the heel consist of soft, yielding rubber and in the preferred form of the invention, as herein illustrated, both inner and outer body portions of soft 1 ieze. Serial no, 104,459.

rubber are emplo ed located res ectivel at the tread and attab hilig faces of ai heel. ibeformation of the yielding tread portion of the heel when the attaching face is deformed, to conform to the surface to which it is to he attached, is prevented by embedding in the heel a substantially rigid, or unyielding, core WhlCh is positioned between the inner and outer rubber body portions substantially at the concave face of the heel and is incapable of transferring the attaching face deformat1on to the tread face.

The core in the illustrative heel herein disclosed is substantially flat, and may advantageously be made of plywood, which is cheap, sufficiently rigid, readily penetrable at every point by attaching nails,'and an exeellcnt nail anchoring material; although it is within the scope of the, invention to employ cores of materials other than plywood which have the necessary qualities.

In orderto prevent the transfer of the attaching face deformation to the tread face to any material extent, the core is preferably of substantial thickness, presenting a large bondlng surface, and is of such size that its edge is close to the edge of the heel. The rubber is strongly bonded to the edge of the core, as well as to both faces, and is effectually prevented from any material flowage in the direction of the height of the heel. Even at the extreme edge of the heel the effect upon the tread face of the deformation of the at taching face is so slight as to be negligible, because the rubber between the edge of the core and the periphery of the heel is relatively'thin and, in the case of a wooden core,

the bonding of the rubber to the edge of the core is exceedingly strong on account of the relatively great .porosity of said edge.

The core may be exposed at the concave face of the heel, which may be. pressed to a face, at the central portion of the attaching face of the heel, affording an unyielding surlirrn and solid bearing'upon the heel base or heel seat of a shoe. In this event a randlike body of the rubber or like yielding material of which the heel is made is bonded to the face of the core aroundthe exposed area thereof and provides the necessary deformability to enable the attaching face of the heel to accommodate itself to surfaces of different shapes.

A further feature of the invention consists in the provision of recesses in that portion of the heel bodywhich is to be deformed in the attaching operation, whereby a considerable saving of rubber is effected and the attaching face of the heel'is, by reason of its ability to yield more easily than if it were solid,

enabled. to adjust itself readily to different heel seats under ordinary heel attaching pressure, applied through the substantially rigid core. After attachment, the deformed inner body portion of the heel is held confined-in adjusted shape by'the core, which is nailed firmly to the shoe.

Fig. 4. is a perspective viewof a heel" of.

modified form.

The illustrated heel is plano-conc'ave in shape, havinga substantially flat tread face 10 and a concave, scoop-shaped attaching face which is formed to an approximation of the convex surface to which the heel is to be attached.

The attaching face comprises a yielding marginal portion 12 and a central, substantially unyielding central portion 14 which, in this specific example of the invention, is'a portion of the face of a rigid, fiat core 16 em-' bedded in the heel body and exposed at the attaching face, as shown. I

The heel body consists preferably of an integral mass of soft rubber or like yielding material molded around, and vulcanized to,

this purpose,

the core 16; the randlike portion 18 on the attaching face side of the core constituting the inner body portion of the heel, and the tread portion 20 constituting the outerbody portion of 'the heel.

The core 16, is shown as consisting of plywood, which is especially well adapted for being substantially inflexible, readily penetrable by nails,-capable of being bonded strongly to rubber, and easily and economically manufactured. The use of other core materials, or combinations of ma- 'terials, is contemplated, however, and it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the use of the particular material described.

While it is not essential that the core 16 be perfectly flat, the use of a core which is substantially fiat'aflords substantial advantages, and is made practical, for heels which are to 'portant characteristic of in any be attached to' convex surfaces, by the provision of'the inner, deformable, body portion 18. vThe core is also of substantial thickness and nearly as large as the heel body the rubber between the edge of the core and the periphery of the heel being relatively thin and firmly bonded to said edge, so'that no material flowage of rubber from the body portion 18 to the tread face of the heel can occur.

In Fig. 3 the heel is shown attached by nails 22 to a shoe 24 having a scoop-shaped heel base 26, the outer face of which is convex. It will be observed that, although unconfined, the outer body portion 20 of the attached heel is substantiall undistorted and that the normal flatness o the tread face 10 is preserved. The inner body portion 18 of the heel, however, has been deformed, by the heel attaching pressure, to approximate conformity to the curvature of the outer face of the base 26 and is held confined between the core 16 and said outer face of the base by the attaching nails, which secure the core firmly in position and hold the rubber 18 in a vise-like grip.

By reason of the rigidity of the core and its size, relative to the size of the heel as a whole, the bulging of the rubber which may result fromthe deformation of the attachng face is localized in the region indicated at 28, and is not transferred to the tread face of the heel in any material degree. This imthe action of the heel under pressure makes it practicable to apply one and the same heel to heel seats or bases presenting surfaces of diflerent curvaturesor'shapes, which has been impracticable with prior heels, in which any substantial deformation of the attaching face would be transferred throughout the entire heel, with the result that the tread face of the attached heel would not be flat.

j The rand-like portion 18 of the heel body may advantageously be recessed, as shown at 30 in Fig. 1 where the recesses are circular, or as shown at 32 in Fig. 4 where the recesses are in the form of radiating slots, or other Way which may be desired. In

addition to effecting a material saving in rubher, the provision of these recesses causes the inner body portion of the heel to yield more easily under pressure than the solid tread portion 20, increasing the ease with which the attaching face of the heel adjusts its shape, under heel attaching pressure, to different heel seats. This is very beneficial in producing intimate contact and a tight edge joint between the rubber heel and the heel seat or base, while the unyielding central portion 14 of the attachin face bears solidly upon the surface of the base, with the result that attached heels are uniform in thickness or height and cannot move upon the attaching nails.

While,

as above indicated, the invention 7 is not limited to recesses of any specific size or shape, the circular recesses illustrated in Fig. 1, each of-which is entirely surrounded,

by yielding material, afford certain advantages from the strandpoints of economy in the manufacture of molds, even distribution of the yielding material in the body portion 18, and strength of bond between said material and the core 16.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is 1. A cushion heel having a yielding tread face, and an attaching face the. central portion of which is less yielding than said tread face and the marginal portion of which is capable of yielding more easily than the body portion at the other side of the core.

4. In a cushion heel, the combination of a substantially rigid, flat core and an integral, heel-shaped body of soft rubber in which the core is embedded, the portion of the rubber body on the outer side of the core being solid and the portion of said body on the inner side of the, core being provided with recesses to permit it to yield more easily than the solid portion.

5. A cushion heel having a substantially rigid core exposed at the central portion of the attaching face of the heel, and a recessed, rand-like body of yielding material bonded to the face of the core around the exposed area thereof.

6. A cushion heel having a substantially rigid core exposed at the central portion of the attaching face of the heel, and a rand-' like body of yielding material bonded to the face of the core around the exposed area thereof, said body being provided with recesses each of which is entirely surrounded by said yielding material. v

In testimony whereof, I have slgned my name. to this specification.

CLIFFORD ROBERTS.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No. l, 722, 309.

Granted July 30, 1929, to

curronn ROBERTS.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 1, lines 96 to 98, strike out the words "which may be pressed to a face, at the central portion of the attaching face of the heel, affording an unyielding sur-" and insert instead "affording an unyielding surface, at the central port-ion of the attaching face of the heel, which may be pressed to a"; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 23rd day of September, A. I D, 1930.

I (Seal) M. J. Moore, Acting- Commissioner; of Patents.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No. 1,132,309. Granted July 30, 1929, to

CLIFFORD ROBERTS.

it is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the abovenumiiered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 1, lines 96 to 98, strike out the Words "Which may be pressed to a face, at the central portion of the attaching of the heel, affording an unyielding sur-" and insert instead "atierding an unyielding surface, at the centrai portion of the attaching face of the heei, which may be pressed to a"; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the ease in the Patent Office.

Signed seaied this 23rd day of September, A. D. 1930.

M. J. Moore, (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

